Political Legend Visits Odette

On Thursday March 16th, the Odette MBA cohort was fortunate to have the opportunity to listen and learn from guest speaker, John Laschinger. An experienced and well respected figure in Canadian political strategy and author of the book, Campaign Confessions.

Throughout the session, Mr. Laschinger imparted his wisdom to the students, who learned important lessons that translate to business from the world of politics. The importance of managing expectations, being open minded to change, continuous listening, and communication within an organization were all important messages brought forward by John. The most significant lesson that was left with the cohort was to take the time to do research before committing to a strategy. As John said, “it is difficult to start a journey without a map, and in life your map is research.”

To conclude his session, Mr. Laschinger provided a very detailed and robust question and answer period, answering many questions from the students, ranging from how he creates strategies for political candidates with diverse ideologies, to questions about the current political environment in Canada.